We had a great competition and showcase headlined by the 9 finalist pitches. One Grand Prize winner was selected to receive $50,000 and an invitation to compete in the Cleantech University Prize finals hosted by VentureWell and the U.S. Department of Energy in Austin, Texas from June 26-27, 2017.

While it was a close decision from the judges, the winning companies were:

Grand Prize

WEAV3D

This Atlanta, Georgia based company This Atlanta, Georgia based team is developing new composite forming equipment.

Runners Up

Thor ORE

This Orlando, Florida based team is developing a new process of by-product mining for Rare Earths and strategic materials.

Sky Nano Technologies

This Nashville, Tennessee based team is creating innovative functional nanomaterials.

Ten promising cleantech companies from throughout the United States participated in MegaWatt Ventures—an annual clean technology business plan competition sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Cleantech University Prize (Cleantech UP). Sensatek Propulsion Technologies was awarded the grand prize of $50,000 and the opportunity to travel to Denver, CO from June 21-23 to compete in the Cleantech UP national finals against teams from other collegiate competitions. Two runners-up, Capacitech Energy and Grow BioPlastics, were also selected to compete in the Cleantech UP finals.

Each team had the opportunity to give a 10 minute pitch followed by judges questions. Judges consisted of seasoned investors, industry veterans, and technical experts representing an array of clean technology backgrounds and experience. The competition supports companies working on intellectual property-protected products, processes or technologies represented from the ten program offices of the DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE).

Many of the winning teams are spin-outs from university research labs and every competing team must be composed primarily of current university students. The student-led ventures are located in five states around the country with a wide range of technologies.

More information on the three top teams can be found below:

Grand Prize Winner

Sensatek Propulsion (www.sensatek.us) – This Tallahassee, Florida based team is developing wireless sensor systems for use in harsh environments.

Runners-Up

Capacitech Energy (www.capacitechenergy.com) – This Orlando, Florida based team is developing supercapacitor cables.

Grow Bioplastics (www.growbioplastics.co) – This Knoxville, Tennessee based team is developing low-cost, bio based plastic.

Ten promising cleantech companies from throughout the United States have been selected for MegaWatt Ventures—an annual clean technology business plan competition sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Cleantech University Prize (Cleantech UP). These teams will compete for $50,000 and other opportunities in front of a panel of renowned venture capitalists, entrepreneurs, renewable energy veterans and Fortune 1000 company technology scouts.

Finalist companies were selected by a judging panel consisting of seasoned investors, industry veterans, and technical experts representing an array of clean technology backgrounds and experience. The competition supports companies working on intellectual property-protected products, processes or technologies represented from the ten program offices of the DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE).

Many of the winning teams are spin-outs from university research labs and every competing team must be composed primarily of current university students. The student-led ventures are located in five states around the country with a wide range of technologies.

Judges founded decisions upon the realities of the current markets, the companies’ employment experience, and how thought-out the business plans would afford overall company success. Each of the top ten finalists receive an opportunity to present at the 2016 MegaWatt Ventures Showcase on June 3rd in Orlando, Florida. The companies will receive cleantech focused entrepreneruhsip training and one-on-one coaching from UCF leading up to the final showcase in June.

While the winning team from Megawatt Ventures will receive $50,000, the top three teams will be invited to compete in the national Cleantech UP finals, hosted by Spark Clean Energy, in Denver from June 21-23 for an opportunity to win an additional $50,000.

Finalist companies for this year’s competition, which will be held June 3rd in Orlando, FL, include:

Capacitech Energy (www.capacitechenergy.com) – This Orlando, Florida based team is developing supercapacitor cables.

FerraPower – This Evanston, Illinois based team is creating alternative, non-carbon based fuels.

Feynman Nano – This Orlando, Florida based team is developing self-cleaning films for solar panels and non-energy applications.

Green Rover – This Miami, Florida based team is developing test instrumentation that will allow optimal solar panel placement.

Grow Bioplastics (www.growbioplastics.co) – This Knoxville, Tennessee based team is developing low-cost, bio based plastic.